This story was produced as part of a larger project, "Growing Up through the Cracks," led by Rich Lord, a participant in the USC Center for Health Journalism's 2018 Data Fellowship.
This story was produced as part of a larger project led by Rich Lord, a participant in the USC Center for Health Journalism's 2018 Data Fellowship.
First 5 supports a host of different programs. That can make it difficult to assess what kind of impact the spending has made over the years, observers say.
Michigan has made successful family reunification a priority. The program is separate from the state’s child welfare and foster care system, and is considered a national leader.
Fewer Arizona children are being removed from their families and the backlog of uninvestigated child abuse reports is down dramatically. But advocates warn that recent progress to overhaul Arizona’s child welfare system could easily be reversed.
"Fixing our foster care crisis” was made possible through major funding from the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona and additional support from the University of Southern California Annenberg Center's Fund for Journalism on Child Well-being.
"Fixing our foster care crisis” was made possible through major funding from the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona and additional support from the University of Southern California Annenberg Center's Fund for Journalism on Child Well-being.
Arizona has the some of the strictest guidelines in the nation for welfare benefits. Tucson mother Jessala Grijalva can usually get what she needs for herself and her three children, but she’s found some surprising exceptions.
Research has shown that sex education results in fewer teen pregnancies, but in California's politically conservative San Joaquin Valley, there is a history of strong push-back against sex ed.
